Live To Fight, Fight To Live
by HobbsMcForeverShort
Summary: Samantha Layton is your regular 18 year old girl who is obsessed with anime and video games. One day, while traveling with her friend Arianna, she gets thrown into the One Piece universe. Join Sam on her insane adventures In One Piece. Ace X OC
1. Car Rides With Law

**Hey..so um this is my One Piece fanfiction...I really hope y'all enjoy it! Btw, if the words are bolded in this chapter, it means the character is speaking Japanese.**

**ALL RIGHTS GO TO THEIR RIGHTFUL OWNERS, I OWN NOTHING EXCEPT THE OCs.**

**EDITED 4/20/15-Thanks Bclarient**

**EDITED 1/6/16- I changed Alex's name to Sam, and I added more of a transition with the fight with Law. Hopefully, some of the confusion is cleared up!**

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Quietly, I watched my teacher work out some math problems that would be on our upcoming test. I twirled my honey blonde curls and let out a sigh of boredom. As I messed with my hair, I looked down at my black hightop converse and light denim skinny jeans. Senior year of high school is pretty chill.

"I have no idea how this is relevant to real life." I whispered to my best friend, Arianna. Ari turned around to face me. Her hair long midnight blue hair was pulled back into a ponytail, showing off her newly dye orange tips. You could also see her multiple ear piercings. I also had piercings on my lip and tongue, but Air had much more than I did. The emo was strong in Ari.

"When you rule the world, you'll know what to burn first." She replied back with the most serious facial expression. Her silvery blue eyes stared straight into my green ones. My family had always explained to me my laughter was extremely loud, but, even with the warning, I forgot how loud I was. Keeping my laughter silent had always been an issue for me, and you can only guess what happened next. I had exploded with laughter. Everyone in the room was staring at me. My cheeks started to feel like they were on fire. Slowly sinking back in my chair, I prayed that the floor would swallow me whole.

"Ms Layton, mind letting us in on the joke?" My teacher, Mrs. Carter, asked with cold gaze. My mouth pressed into an unamused straight line. I stared down at the floor.

'Hey floor, can you please work with me here?' Shifting my gaze around, I managed to embarrass myself even more. "Uh, I'll rule the world?" I sputtered out. Mrs. Carter shook her head.

"Since you seem so interested. You can stay after class and we can discuss math together." Mr. Carter said sarcastically. I tried opening my mouth to retaliate, but she held up her hand. "I'll see you after class." Everyone, except Ari, laughed at me. Ari softly patted my back, in an attempt to comfort me. Placing my head in my hands, I glared at the floor wondering when it would do its job.

"How much longer until lunch?" I muttered to Ari with a weak smile. She slapped her forehead and then smacked my shoulder.

"First off, its only 9:35. Secondly, you literally just ate a whole family-sized bag of chips." Ari explained rubbing her forehead, trying to lighten up the heavy atmosphere. I sighed. Today was going to be long.

"I am going to eat this table, okay? Okay." I mumbled as I laid my head down on the table. Ari chuckle and rubbed my back.

"Go to sleep, I'll wake you if you need to do anything." I slowly nodded. Since I was already in trouble, I guess it wouldn't hurt. I closed my eyes and slowly started to sleep. When I finally got to a deep enough sleep where I could ignore everyone, I felt an arm being shoved into my side. I groaned. Ari was the culprit because she was whispering something to me. My eyes slanted as I turned to where Ari was suddenly pointing.

"Ms. Layton, You really must want to be friends." Mrs. Carter stated, glaring down at me. Ari managed to wake me up before Mrs. Carter arrived at our table, but it was too late because Mrs. Carter knew I was asleep. Suddenly, the bell rang. "Class dismissed, except for you Ms. Layton." Everyone filed out of the room with stifled laughter.

"I'll wait for you outside…" Ari whispered to me before she got up from the table. I made a nervous laugh as I rubbed the back of my head. Mrs. Carter's glared softened when everyone left the room

"Samantha are you all right?" Mrs. Carter asked with concern. My eyebrows knitted in confusion. I gazed down at my long-sleeve blue Naruto t-shirt, trying to avoid eye contact.

"Uh, yeah?" I said scratching the back of my neck. Mrs. Carter gave me unconvinced look. Why was she suddenly concerned?

"Samantha, you hardly pay attention in class anymore." Her gaze turned sympathetic. "Is something bothering you?" My eyebrows lifted in understanding. She finally figured out I do not pay attention in class. Wow, took her until Christmas Break to figure that out.

"I'm just really ready for break." I said with a fake laugh. Her eyes glinted with sudden realization.

"Well, that's understandable. Just don't let me catch you sleeping again, all right?" I nodded and jolted out of the room. As I stepped out of the room, I saw Ari turned away from the classroom door, tapping her black combat boots. I could clearly see her back because she wore a black halter top with a leather also wore her favorite dark skinny jeans that had major rips in them. I coughed to get her to face me. The chick is crazy because it was below freezing outside...how the heck is she not cold?

"That was quick. Did you sweet talk your way out?" Ari questioned with a smirk. I rolled my eyes and punched her shoulder. We both laughed as we continued to our next class. "Oh right, almost forgot to tell you! The math homework is due in a hour." My eyes practically popped out of their sockets as I started at her. "She let us work on it while you were asleep."

"You can't be serious!" She stopped walking and smirked at me. "Oh my gosh, you're literally the worst." Ari laughed. I swatted the back of her head in frustration. I heard Ari growl and within seconds my face was on the ground. She had jumped on top of me and in the process knocked us both to the ground. "*Cough* Ow…." She stood up and wiped off her jeans.

"Serves you right, idiot." She growled out, stomping her way to class. I coughed again. "Why did I choose such violent friends…"

**TO LUNCH**

"I hope you know my face still hurts…" I mumbled to Ari. I glared at her as we sat down at a table in local mall's food court.

"Quit your whining!" She exclaimed with sarcasm. We looked at each other seriously, but then laughed at one another. Quietly, we ate our lunch. My brows furrowed as I had a sudden thought

"Important question." I stated with a mouthful of food. Ari looked at me with disgust.

"Gosh, you really need to learn some manners Sam…." She gagged. "-but, what is it you were going to ask?" With a giant gulp, I swallowed my food. My face rapidly changed into a serious expression.

"Would you eat Sanji's food?" Ari slapped her forehead. I flinched. Ouch, that was a hard slap…

" I swear, if you keep asking stupid questions…I will strangle you." Ari grumbled. I laughed uncontrollably, and Ari slammed her hands on the table. As I laughed even harder, Ari jumped out of her chair. The chair fell back because of my laughter. My laughing stopped as I hit the floor. Ari stopped and ran around to help me. "Crap, you alright?" She worriedly asked. I could not help but to resume laughing. Frustrated, Ari kicked me. "Idiot, I can't believe I was actually worried you were hurt…"

"Aw, the witch's heart finally melted." I cooed. Her face flashed with anger. She cracked her knuckles, causing me to bolt up from the floor. "Sorry, not sorry!" I screeched as I began to run away.

"Oh no you don't." Ari yelled as she ran after me. I squealed as I exited the food court. Ari chased me all the way to my car.

"ARI STHAP YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I HATE RUNNING!" I politely screamed for her to stop. "I KNOW! I'LL GIVE YOU SOME OF MY CHOCOLATE IF YOU STOP CHASING ME!" Ari continued to run after me. "PLEASE I GUNNA RIP MY JEANS! THESE ARE MY FAVORITE PAIR!" I finally stopped and was pushed to the ground by Ari. Groaning, I tried to push her off of me. Her face twisted into an evil grin. My eyes widened and I began to struggle more. Her eyes glinted with mischief as she held up ketchup packets. "Ari, no." I pleaded. She laughed madly.

"Apologize!" She opened the first packet. Biting my lip, I hesitantly apologized. Ari stood up and I let out a breath of relief. I got up from the ground and wiped off my jeans. Looking down at my phone, I saw we were running late for school.

Luckily, we made it back to the school on time with the rest of the day going smoothly. I was ecstatic that it was finally spring break. The rest of the day I was staring at the clocks, counting down until the school day was over. Ari and I practically jumped put of our seat when the last bell rang for the day.

"Thanks again for driving us down to my dad's house.." Ari thanked me. We both stopped walking in the school's parking lot. Her eyes were staring at the pavement. She hated when I do stuff for her because she hated taking things from me. I rolled my eyes and pushed her.

"Stop that. You know I love to drive and going to your dad's" She gave me a unsatisfied look.

"Dad's house is five hours away.…" I held up my hands in defense.

"Alright, alright. You can drive the way back if you feel so bad!" She laughed. We started to walk again and found my car. In a hurry, we threw our backpacks in the trunk. "Alright, Ari you're the DJ and navigator on this road trip!" I ordered as we sat in our seat. Ari nodded and I started up my car. Ari turned up the music when we left the parking lot.

**TWO HOURS LATER**

Everything was going great until my car decided to be a butt. Not even halfway to our destination, my car broke down. To make things worse, Ari and I were in the middle of nowhere.

"You got to be kidding me!" Ari yelled, kicking a tire. She immediately regretted it as she clutched her foot. I was confused. Did I not have my car checked yesterday? Strange..

"Ari, check to see where the closest gas station is.." I muttered, pulling up the hood of my car. Ari grumbled some type of response as she pulled out her phone.

"There is a gas station about 5 miles from here…" Ari vocalized after a few minutes. In the tense silence, Ari and I grabbed our bags. The anger practically rolled off Ari. Her brows were furrowed and she stormed off, leaving me behind. I yelled for Ari to slow down, but she ignored me. Smirking, I ran over to Ari and threw my arm around her shoulder. Her face was red from anger. I started to rub her back obnoxiously.

"Quit." She rubbed the bridge of her nose. I stuck out my lower lip in a pout. Ari walked faster, pushing my arm off her shoulder. Why did she ignore my emotional support….

"Can we make this an adventure?" I asked as I twirled my hair and gave myself a mustache.

"No." She muttered angrily. Ignoring her response, I ran in front of her. I spun myself around and started to walk backwards. Ari glared. "Would you please stopping being so stupid right now?" She desperately pleaded. "We are in the middle of nowhere and it is night. Who knows what could happen to us!" I tapped my chin, pretending that I was thinking.

"Don't worry about it." I shrugged off.

"Amazing…it is literally amazing how stupid you can b-" Ari unexpectedly came to a stop. She stared behind me. I turned around. The road had disappeared or randomly stopped. Instead of road there was a giant field of flowers. Ari gazed down at her phone. "The map says the road continues. What did you do, Sam?" Ari cried out. I shrugged my shoulders.

"Wasn't me." I whispered. Instantaneously, an explosion pushed Ari and I to the ground. "Ari!" I shrieked as I hit the ground. My head was spinning, and I carefully sat up. "You all right?" I heard a soft groan, and I let a sigh of relief. She was okay. Standing up, I looked to see what caused the explosion. My mouth flew opened when I saw a figure laying in field. The figure was clumped up, as if he was injured. I ran to the person. The closer I got, the more I realized how injured the person was. There was pool of blood around the person. I ran even faster. "Call 911, Ari! Quickly!" I ordered as I made it to the person. The person was a younger, muscular man. He was smiling, but was unconscious. Crouching, I examined the man to find his injury. Crap! His chest was practically gone. The giant hole in his chest was profusely bleeding, so I applied pressure with my hands.

'I need your help.' A voice spoke, making me jump. 'Calm down…' The voice tried to comfort me. Today was the day I talked to my insanity..…apparently.

'So..I'm just going to ignore the fact you being in my head…' I said, or should it be thought? The voice tsked. My eye twitched. Great, I annoyed my insanity. How can Ari put up with me?

'Shut up and relax.' An over-whelming strength filled my body. My blood boiled. I looked down at the man. He seemed familiar with his curly black hair and freckle-covered face. My hand moved on its own. It caressed the man's cheek. I gazed back down at the man's wound. With a giant gasp, I realized who the man was. Portgas D. Ace.

'H-how? Ace is fictional, right." I asked to no one in particular. The voice chuckled.

'Well, hun, he's more real than you realize.' I fell back on my butt in shock. 'Wai-' The voice was cut short by Ace gasping for air. Once again, my body moved on its own. I hovered over Ace. I felt tears prickle in my eyes. Why was I sad? Why was I frustrated?

'Concentrate.' The voice commanded. Concentrate on what? My chest started to pound and my head felt light.

_**~FLASHBACK~**_

_"Ace?" My brows furrowed at Ari in confusion. Ari was excitedly discussing our newest obsession, One Piece. She was further along than I was, and she knew more than I did._

_"Yeah, Portgas D. Ace, Luffy's brother." Her eye glinted with excitement._

_"Luffy has a brother?" I asked. Ari grinned mischievously. Oh no… She cackled evilly as she pulled out her computer. I gulped when she slammed the computer down. Immediately, I faced the opposite direction "Look." My head turned, hesitantly, over to the computer. When I looked at the picture, my mouth flew opened. I ignored the stinging in my nose and kept staring at the picture._

_"Uh, Sam…" Ari shook me, gaining my attention. I glared at her._

_"What?" She laughed all of a sudden. What was so funny? Was I drooling? …..No, I was not drooling. Then, what is making her laugh? Ari then points to my nose. My nose? "What about my nose?" No longer being able to contain it, Ari fell out of her chair laughing. I touched my nose and felt something wet. My eyes widened when I saw blood on my fingers. Not even a second later, a flood gate opened and blood literally started to squirt out of my nose. OH MY GOSH, I WAS GOING TO DIE. "Ari help me! I'm going to die!" Ari laughed even harder. After a few minutes and ten boxes of tissues, my nose stopped bleeding. I was sitting on my bed glaring at Ari with tissues shoved up my nose._

_"T-that was even worse than Sanji's" She wiped the sides of her eyes._

_"Shut up, you know I don't get nosebleeds!" Ari laughed and patted my back._

_"Its okay….Sanji."_

_**~END~**_

My eye twitched. 'Was that necessary?' I asked the voice. The voice began to laugh.

'Very, very much so.' I crossed my arms and huffed. 'Lose the attitude, we have work to d-' Ace started to have a coughing fit, and his eyes slowly closed.

"**Ace, fight. Keep fighting and open your eyes!" **I screamed. What did I say? What the heck was going on? Ace's eye cracked open. He stared up at me and smiled. My tears fell on his cheeks, causing Ace's smile to falter. A weak sob shook my body. Why was I crying? I hardly know him! "**Ace.**" I softly sobbed. WHY WAS I BEING SO GIRLY!? The Lord was testing me…

"**S-sam****."** Ace weakly laughed as he slowly stretched out his hand. He wiped my tears. How did he know my name? My head was pounding and my heart was racing. I squeezed my eyes closed. HOW WAS I SUPPOSED TO REACT TO A HOT SHIRTLESS GUY TOUCHING MY CHEEK!? Ugh, my stomach started to feel sick. Suddenly, another explosion shoved me back from Ace. I would be happy that the awkwardness was over, but the sharp pain in my butt said otherwise. When my eyes opened, Ace had disappeared and there was another figure in his place.

"SAM DID YOU FRICKIN' BREAK THE UNIVERSE?!" Ari had hit me over the head. Finally decided to show up, huh. She was probably taking pictures or something. I glared at her and turned back to the figure. Standing in front of us was Trafalgar Law. I slapped my forehead. Perfect. He glared at both Ari and I. I waved at him, which caused him to furrow his brows. Maybe I need to give a hug to cheer him up! I started walking towards him...well, it was more of a skip. He, in return, unsheathed his sword. Immediately, I stopped and gave him a confused look. Law pointed his sword at me. My forehead and palms became sweaty as I laughed nervously. I lifted my hands gave him a nervous smile.

"Now, now. Don't get your panties in a twist. We haven't done anything." Law did not seem convinced. In fact, he seemed to not even understand what I said. Suddenly, Law swiped his sword at me. Some unnatural sound left my throat as I dodged. As he was still extended, I quickly punched him in the stomach and kicked him away. Thank you Taeknowdo..."WOAH THERE BUDDY! NO NEED TO CUT ME DOWN!" I yelled as I carefully kept my distance from him. If looks could kill, Law would have already killed me.

"Yeah, Sam's short enough!" Ari added on to my pervious statement. I turned and glared at her.

"Now's not the time, Ari! Why don't you come and help! Law doesn't seem to think we are friends, and I really don't want to be at the end of his wrath..." I growled out to Ari. Law, once again, slashed his sword at me. With a another odd sound, I moved out of the way and kicked Law away. I paled as Law growled.

"Nah, I'm good here..."Ari's voice cracked. "There is a reason you are called the Tasmanian Devil in Taeknowdo!" She tried to convince me. I shook my head and sighed. Law slowly began walking to me as I continued to side step out of his path. My brows furrowed. Why was he walking? Wait...oh crap...

"Law isn't even trying, Ari! I can barely keep up with him!" Law lifted his hand, confirming my suspensions. "I swear, if you do that room crap I will murder you." I explained rubbing my forehead.

"**Room.**" Law stoically stated. My eye twitched as I cracked my knuckles.

"I going to strangle you." I yelled running at Law. For a few seconds, I wondered why he was fighting us. He also was not going full-power with me. We literally had done nothing to him. I am so confused right now. Quickly, I shook my head, trying to focus in on the fight. He glared and flipped his fingers. I was slung to the ground. The air in my lungs was knocked out. My blood began to boil. OH. HECK. NO. When I stood up, my legs gave out in exhaustion. It felt like I was hit by a bus. The strength I had earlier was zapped from my body. Law suddenly popped in front of Ari.

"**Come.**" I understood what he said, but Ari looked over at me in confusion and fear. Before I had realized it, I was running over to Ari. I was such an idiot.

"**Don't you dare touch her!**" I screeched with the little Japanese I knew and I punched him in his nose. His nose cracked underneath my knuckle, but the force also cracked my knuckles. "CRAP!" I yelled clutching my hand. Law cracked his nose back in place and he sent me the ugliest glare..ever. He was livid. Without wasting a second, he kicked me in the side. Hard. I coughed and blood drizzled out of my mouth. Yuck. Law punched me in the stomach, causing my vision to blur. He let me fall with a sadistic grin. Unable to move, I watched him walk over to Ari.

"**Stop it.**" I choked out. He grinned and gripped Ari by the neck. My body felt like it was on fire. I was going to kill him. Suddenly, Ari disappeared. I screamed in rage and tried to get up. Law transported in front of me and slammed his foot down on my stomach. He tried to tell me something, but I did not understand what he said. My vision started to grow dark. Seconds later, I passed out.

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**Sorry if the first chapter is a bit confusing! I promise it will make sense in later chapters!**

**Hoped you enjoyed it, please leave a comment! Constructive criticism is always welcomed!**


	2. New Girl, Strange Events

**HERE IT IS! THE LONG AWAITED CHAPTER! I hope you enjoy it because I worked hard on this chapter. I have so many ideas for this story, so hopefully I will be more motivated to write more. Also, I made a few changes. Alex is now Sam and her and Ari are Seniors. I also added more to the Law fight because I tried to clear up some of the confusion. Its probably best to go back and read the pervious chapter, if you haven't read it with the changes. ALL RIGHTS GO TO THIER RIGHTFUL OWNERS. I ONLY OWN SAM, NOTHING ELSE!**

**Edit 1/8/16- Thank you Ashlielle for helping!**

**"Yo!"-English speaking**

"Yo!"-Japanese speaking

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**~3rd POV~**

A young man, who seemed to be in his late teens or earlier twenties, broke twigs as he stepped through the dense brush of the forest. A soft light broke though the tree line as the sun slowly set for the day. With the air gradually getting cooler, the man realized the day was nearly over. The man was searching the area he had heard a crash earlier, and he needed to find what caused it before the day ended. If he did not find the cause soon, he would have to leave because he had to keep traveling with his pirate crew and his curiosity would be the death of him if he could not find the crash site. He scratched his head as he was beginning to feel frustrated. With a huff, he ran his hand through his black, curly hair and hummed in deep thought.

"I swear I heard the crash from over here…" He muttered to himself. Clicking his tongue in irritation, the man stopped to look around. Suddenly, the tree limbs above him started snapping and groaning as if something was falling from the tall trees. Before he could respond, the "something" smacked him to the ground as it landed on top of him. The black-haired man coughed and groaned at the sudden crash. He opened his eyes slowly. A surprised gasp escaped the man's mouth as he saw the "something" was actually a girl. She was out cold. Surprise turned into curiosity as he studied the girl. The man immediately found the girl strange, not that he has not seen strange people before. He shook his head, something else was strange and it was not her appearance. She looked to be almost his age and she had a piercing on her lip. That was not too strange. He slowly got up from the ground, careful with the girl, who was currently snoring. The young man sighed in relief to know she was not in immediate danger. He grunted as he picked her up and adjusted his arms to even out the weight. The sun was starting to set, he concluded as he stared up at the sky. His friends had told him to be back at sundown, so he should probably hurry. As he walked through of the woods, he continued to glance down at the girl to see what was so strange about her. He started to notice the girl's wounds. Her hand was swollen and had a nasty black and blue color mixture. She stopped snoring and her face wrinkled in pain with each breath she took. The man noticed her chest was oddly shaped, and he realized that probably meant her ribs were broken. His pace quicken as he saw the girl's struggled breathing. As he ran, he thought that it also was not her wounds that made her strange. Within the next few minutes, he heard voices ahead. He smiled, knowing the voices of his friends. The girl needed help, and maybe they can do something to help her.

"Oi." He yelled as he continued to run. The young man's friends smiled as they saw their friend running toward started calling out to him happily, saying that dinner was nearly ready. Even though the others were cheerful, one of the friends immediately ran towards the young man. The friend's face was full of concern as he saw the girl.

"Ace! What happened, yoi?" He called out to the young man. Ace shook his head.

"I don't know, Marco. I was trying to find where we heard the crash earlier and she fell from the trees." Marco nodded not breaking his gaze from the girl. The girl's breathing became labored and each breath was becoming a struggle for her. With his fast thinking, Marco took the girl from Ace.

"I'll fly her back to the ship. You help everyone finish gathering the supplies, yoi." Ace nodded and ran over to the group of people. As he heard Marco take off, Ace realized why the girl was so strange. It was not her appearance nor her wounds, but it was her in general. She seemed like she was out of place.

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~**Time Skip: The Next Day Sam's POV~**

Ugh. My head was killing me and a strong scent of cleaning products made my nostrils sting. I slowly opened my eyes and flinched at the brightness of the room. Almost immediately, I tried to cover my eyes with my hands, but I felt several cords pull back on my arm. The cords were, as I saw, attached to both my arm and hand. To be more exact, it was an IV and heart monitor. Since when was I in a hospital?

"**The heck…**." I mumbled to myself. Frustrated, I pulled the cords out. The heat monitor shrilled loudly. My eye slanted as I glared at the monitor. Suddenly, the door burst opened. The loud slam shocked me and I shot up into a sitting position. A sharp pain went through my side and my lung heaved causing me to have a coughing fit. As I was coughing up my lungs, I heard footstep come near me. After a few seconds, my fit ceased and a gross metallic taste filled my mouth. I then felt a warm hand touch my back and another hand held a glass of water in front of me. Smiling, I thanked the person and took the water. My throat felt extremely dry as I starting drinking the water, so I was chugging the water greedily. The person next to me started laughing. Curious, but still drinking my water, I looked over to see my "savior". Standing right next to me was Marco. My eyes nearly flew out of my head as I choked on my water. Again, my lungs decided to be jerks and I had another coughing fit. Marco patted my back until I stopped coughing. When I was finished, he helped by fixing the pillows behind me so I could rest on them.

"You okay?" A second voice asked. My brows knitted as I trying to piece together my environment. First off, that was Japanese and I am not fluent in Japanese. That could be a problem. Secondly, that voice was extremely familiar. Slowly, I turned my gaze to the door, and standing next to the door was none other than Portgas D. Ace. My stomach churned and I could feel the color drain from my face.

"Y-yeah" I managed to stuttered out in my shock. With in seconds, I began to feel nauseous. "**Nope. Nope, I take that back I'm going to blow chunks.**" I said holding a hand over my mouth and motioned to Marco to hand me the nearby trash can. Immediately, Marco rushed to grab the trash can and gave it to me. He was just in time because I started throwing up without wasting a second. I heard Ace laugh as came over and grabbed my hair.

"Lair." He said as I finished. Marco handed me a washcloth to wipe my face. After I wiped my face, I rested back on the pillow. I sighed. Both Ace and Marco were both watching me intently, probably making sure I was not going to throw up again. Ace said something, but being limited in my Japanese, I did not understand. I just stared back at him. Marco tried to help, but I also did not understand….again. I blew the hair out of my face. This was going to be difficult. Ari was really good at communicating. Wait.

"**Ari!**" I yelped as I remember yesterday's events. A rush of worry fooled my system as I thought what circumstances Ari was in. What did Law do to her? Was she okay? What if she was hurt? Each passing thought made my anxiety bubble. Finally, I was so worried that I could not stay still. I needed to find Ari. Panic filled my system as I rushed up out of the bed. Sweat started bead at the top of my forehead. Ace and Marco were probably too shocked to stop me because I was able to run out of the room with no problem. Almost immediately, my chest and side were searing with pain, but I did not stop running. Where was Ari? The hallways in the building were huge, and at points I felt like I was in a maze. Many of the hallways had similar layouts, so it seemed as if I was running around in circles. I felt as if I was running for ages. Running around corners and rushing up stairs, I was sure that my adrenaline was kicking in because I normally did not run fast…or run in general. I ignored the feeling fatigue and pain. Warm tears were freely running down my face. Feeling frustrated, I gripped my hair and shaking it around. Ari! I pushed myself to run faster. When I finished running up a flight of stairs, I shoved the door open and a rush of wind hit my face. The breeze was warm and had a salty scent. Confused, I hurried out the door. Sunlight blinded me as I went outside. My eyes squinted as I tried to observe my surroundings. The hot sun rays gleamed on my pale skin. First thing, I registered was the salty scent was from the nearby ocean because I could hear the waves crashing. Second observation, I noticed that I was on a deck. The deck was enormous with all of the open space. No longer running, I slowly made my way to the edge of the deck. My heart sunk to my stomach when I saw that I was on the Moby Dick and the ship was surrounded by open sea. Exhaustion hit me like a bus, and I felt the world spin around me. Voices began to swirl around me as the crew started gathering around. I tried to take a few step back, but my knees gave from underneath me. Each breath I took was like hot lead was filling up my lungs. It was hard for me to breath. My lungs were not fully inflating. Fear burned through my veins and I tried desperately to stand up. No matter what I did, my body was not responding. Was I going to die? No, that was irrational. There was so many people around that someone could lead me to safety. Though, I knew no one and that was the scary part. How was I to know if I was not already considered an enemy by the Whiteboard pirates. Tears prickled in the corners of my eyes. Oh, Ari where were you? Why was I here? How did I even get to the One Piece world?

'_**I know you are scared**_' The same voice from yesterday told me. It was strange to hear the voice again and the voice had a sad tone. '_**It is important you are here. I'm sorry that I can't explain everything, but I don't have much time. All you need to know is that you can trust Whitebeard and his family.'**_

_** '**_**Wait!**_**' **_I tried to call back. The voice chuckled.

_**'Everything will be revealed through time, and you need to do is just be you. ' **_My twitched. How was that helpful? The environment around me started to get darker, and my body felt cold as I felt my body fall to the ground. Last thing I remember before I completely lost conscience was loud shouts and footsteps. Guess I freaked everyone out…whoops.

* * *

Once again, there was an intense scent of antiseptics. Was I back in the hospital room? I slowly opened my eyes, so they could gradually adjust to the light. My mistake earlier by sitting up too fast was taken in account as I stayed laying down. As I rested, I observed my surroundings and concluded I was in the same room as earlier. I let out a sigh, but, almost immediately, a sharp pain pierced my chest. The air in my lungs left as the pain was so unexpected and discomforting. It took a few seconds of groaning and pathetic coughing to gain control over the pain. Once the pain was to a dull throb, I stared up at the ceiling. My thoughts were muddled because my mind was racing. So much had happened, and I could barely keep up. Exhausted washed over me. Man was I tired, and it was not just a physical exhaustion. Carefully, I shifted around in the bed to where I could sit up. Just as I was going to sit up, the door slammed open. My eyes widened as I was shoved back down. Blinking(and also wincing because shove was not soft), I was confused on how I was back in a laying position. An angry click of the tongue made me look up at the culprit, Ace. Ace was glaring at me. Oh. Crap. Nervously, I took the blanket and tried to hide underneath it, but Ace grabbed the blanket as I weakly and repeatedly away slapped his hand.

"Stop that!" He shouted in frustration. Finally, he pulled away the blanket. Ace looked at me sternly as he asked me something. Whatever he had said was out of my limited Japanese vocabulary, so I just blinked back at him. Man, how often was I going to do that? Yeah, real fun to stare back at someone when they ask you a question. It was super awkward and I was really bad with awkward situations, okay! He let out a sigh as he looked less stern and more concerned. Ace put the blanket back over me and then walked towards the door. "Don't move." I nodded and went back to gazing at the ceiling. The room could have used more color. It was too white for my liking, maybe some orange will brighten it up. Just like my room that Ari hated because it was too bright. I shook my head as a sudden feeling of sadness washed over me. My eyes stung with unshed tears. I lifted my arm to cover my eyes, so if Ace or anyone else came they would not see me cry. Ugh, I hated crying. As I thought more about Ari the more my heart clenched in sorrow. Where was she? The only thing I could do what sit and worry about her. An anger began to boil in my chest as I sat there thinking how hopeless I was. My hands started to shake violently. Quickly, I took deep breaths and started to analyze why I was feeling these emotions. Was it because Ari was missing? Being alone? Or could it be I hated being forced to lay down? Maybe I was overthinking things. Ari was a black belt in Taekwondo and knew One Piece better than I did, so she could handle herself. Still, I was worried for her. My hand had stopped shaking. I let out a small breath of relief.

* * *

"**I wanna be the very best~**" I softly began to sing to myself because I could not stand the quietness of the room. Ace had been gone for what seemed like hours. As I laid staring at the ceiling, I began to wonder if I could actually help out and change things in the One Piece universe. I mean, there was so many characters that I could save like Thatch and Ace. Could I save them without affecting big pieces of the storyline?

"YO YOU ALIVE KID?!" A voice suddenly yelled as the culprit kicked the door in. With my eyes nearly popping out and the heart monitor shrieking with my heart rate shooting through the roof, I slowly turned my head towards the door. It was a worried Thatch along with an annoyed Marco and a hysterical Ace.

"Idiot." Marco muttered underneath his breath, which caused Ace to laugh even harder. My brows furrowed as I watched Ace fall to the floor in laughter.

"**Who gave Ace sugar?**" I asked. The three men looked at me with surprised expressions. Guess they were not use to English….

"What, yoi?" Marco responded, completely baffled with my unusual tongue. All of a sudden, the gravity of not being able to communicate was becoming reality rather than just petty worry. I swallowed hard, trying to relieve the dryness of my parched throat.

"**Do you speak English?**" My voice was extremely hoarse and I cringed at the roughness. All three raised a brow as they exchanged glance between one another. The room went silent as the men also realized how great the language barrier was.

"**E-english, **yoi?" Marco stuttered out, as if he had just the word, which, in this case, was extremely likely. Well, that was all understandable with One Piece having only one language that was universal. I never saw anyone in the anime speak another language besides English or Japanese. Which also makes sense that they are speaking Japanese, the original language One Piece was made in. Ugh, why could it not have been English!?

"**Of course, English probably never existed here. Well, that's just peachy…"** I huffed as I put my hand on my forehead in frustration as I thought how I should have been more diligent in studying Japanese. The door unexpectedly opened. Astonished, I turned to see Ace holding some paper and an ink quill. Wait, when did he leave? He gave me a giant smile when he saw my questioning look. Marco softly smiled, instantly catching on what Ace was planning to do. Thatch said something in a questioning manner, and I believe Ace told him an answer, probably about what the paper and quill were for. Still skeptical, I watched the men carefully. Marco helped place pillows behind me, and then carefully helped me rest up against them. I smiled at Marco because I hated laying down for long periods of time and now I was sitting up comfortably. Ace and Thatch were grabbed chairs and a mobile tray that could rolled up and hover over the hospital bed. When everyone was seated and everything was set up, Marco exchanged a few words with Ace and Thatch. I could guess that it was about me not understanding Japanese because Ace was completely dumb-founded and Thatch looked as he could burst into tears at any second. I let out a nervous laugh. Marco gave me a comforting smile as he gently patted my shoulder.

"Name?" Ace asked first. A huge grin spreader across my face, I could introduce myself.

"Samantha Layton. Please take care of me." All three of them bursted out in laughter, when I did a bow, completely forgetting about my injuries, which made me hiss in pain. After laughing along for a few seconds, they all were looking at me with an excited expression.

"S-saman-tha-a?" Thatch tired to say, and I softly chuckled realizing my name was difficult to say.

"Sam, please." I stated, which Thatch sighed in relief.

"How old are you?" Ace questioned next. He leaned back in seat with two front legs of the chair came off the ground. I watched as Ace stretched and let out a yawn. It then dawned on me that Ace has not had one of his narcoleptic fits. That was extremely impressive because it meant this was an important moment. Ace never had one of his fits if the situation was important, for instance, meeting Luffy again in the Alabasta arc or the Marineford battle.

"I am seventeen years old." I hesitated for a moment, as I was trying to remember how to say the phrase. Thatch pumped his fist in the air as he stated something I did not understand. After his small celebration, he winked at me. I gave him a look of disgust, which Ace and Marco let out uncomfortable, nervous laughter. Thatch stretched out his arm to give me a hug. My instincts kicked in as I blocked his hands and punched him straight in the stomach. He groaned in pain from the blow. Ace and Marco were suddenly on the floor laughing their butts off.

"**Ouch!**" I hissed as I clutched my hand. A sharp sting vibrated through my knuckles and the stabbing pain in my lungs. I pulled my hand close to my chest, examining it. My hand was a gross blackish blue shade. You know, I was thinking my hand was broken. Just a small feeling or the fact that it was huge and pulsing. Well, that was what I get for taking on Law and not going to Taekwondo in a while. Calmly, I took deep breaths, trying to dull the pain again. After a few moments of laughing and catching one's breath, Ace and Marco finished their laughing fit and then each of the men decided to introduce themselves. My chest fluttered in excitement with each simple introduction. A giant grin broke across my face. Even though I was in a completely different world, I was meeting my heroes: the Fire Fist, Chicken Marco, and…uh Thatch the Thatchish of them all? Oh wow, that was completely stupid. I mean, really? The Thatchish of them all? I probably needed some sleep, or even food. When was the last time I even ate? At that thought, my stomach erupted with a horridly loud growl. A blush flushed my face as I nervously laughed. Ace stood up and told the other two men something before he walked out.

* * *

**~Ace's POV~**

I strolled silently down the hallway because I was deep in thought about the day's events. Sam was strange. It was frustrating that was all I could muster at the moment. She had an atmosphere that I describe as mysterious yet transparent. Sam was open with us, or it least of what we asked her. There was still so much we did not know about her. Everything about her seemed different, and I had no idea how to explain why she was different. The events were strange, I could not deny that. I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair. For now, I was getting food for me and the others back in the medical room. That was the only thing I was worried about, or it least that is what I wanted to say. As I climbed the last flight of stairs and stepped out on the deck, I immediately smiled. The salty scent and the cool night air made me feel like I was back home with Luffy and Sabo. I stopped and glanced up at the stars. They were gorgeous as they sparkled brightly. Life as a pirate was amazing with the freedom I can experience. I cannot even imagine a different life. Why would I not want this life? Suddenly, my stomach gave a loud growl, breaking me from my trance. I laughed and ran to the kitchen for some food.

* * *

**~ Several minutes later, Ace's POV~**

As I returned back to the medical room, Thatch and Marco were sitting in chairs around Sam's bed, watching her draw. She was biting her lip as she concentrated on her current work.

"Ace, come look at this! Sam has some talent!" Thatch waved me over. I nodded and handed out the food before sitting down. Thatch and Marco began to happily shove the food in their mouths as I soon followed. Because she was still drawing, Sam took a huge bite and continued drawing. Sam never broke her concentration from her sketch, even as she ate. I stared at her drawing, which was a picture of a girl. My brows furrowed.

"What is she drawing?" I questioned with a mouth full of food, still watching Sam. Marco shrugged as he ate his food. Sam then set the quill down. "Who is that?" She stared at me for a second with an excited smile, and shifted her gaze to the drawing. Her smile dimmed as she picked up the drawing and wiped the food from her mouth.

"Friend….Ari." Her voice cracked as she said her friend's name. Sam began to tremble. I reached out and put my hand on shoulder. She looked at me with tear-filled eyes. Then, to our surprise, she took a deep breath and grabbed another piece of paper. Sam motioned for us to watch. By this time, Marco, Thatch, and I all stopped eating. We all stared as Sam drew. The first drawing of was of three stick figures. Two of the stick figures had bags, while the third had a sword…and a strange hat. She pointed to the figures with the bags. "Ari. Me." We all nodded. She then held up her fist and pointed to the figure with the sword. I was confused. She fought the figure? Well, not the figure, but the person.

"Who, yoi?" Marco tapped on the figure with a serious expression. Sam's expression turned from sad to furious within a split second. Her eyes looked up from the drawing and straight into Marco's eyes. Marco eyes widened slightly at the sudden seriousness.

"Trafalgar Law." She said with a venom in her tone. A plate suddenly fell on the floor and a chair was knocked to the ground. Marco had stood up, knocking the plate out of his lap. His eyes were wide. My jaw flew open. This chick picked a fight with the infamous, and creepy if I might add, rookie Law.

"No wonder she has so many injuries." I whispered to myself. My fingers ran through my hair as I huffed. This girl was something else.

* * *

**Thanks for reading! Thanks for sticking with me and waiting so long!**


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